A. Wordle is an online program that allows users to create word clouds from text. The text can be a list of vocabulary words or an entire paper or book.
B. While practicing with Wordle I found that it is best to create the word list in a Microsoft Word document, then copy and paste the list into the Wordle window. By creating the word document, you still have your word list if there is a problem and your word cloud doesn’t come out as expected. As a teacher of Algebra I, Algebra II, Geometry, Pre-Calculus, Calculus and Consumer Math, I was disappointed to learn that Wordle does not treat equations (such as a2+b2=c2) as words. Wordle just ignores all equations and mathematical notation like f(x).
C. I am still trying to figure out how I can use Wordle in most of my classes. Algebra I, Algebra II, Pre-Calculus and Calculus do not have a lot of vocabulary in each section or even each chapter. I think that I can use Wordle to introduce Vocabulary Words in Geometry and Consumer Math. I could put all of the words into a file and create a word cloud in a font that was outlined, not filled in, print it out and give everyone one at the beginning of the chapter. Students could use colored pencils to color in the words as they are covered. I also think that I could ask each student to type a review document describing what had been learned in the chapter. I could then use the student writing to put into Wordle. We could then compare their individual writing to the initial vocabulary Wordle to see if they learned what I was trying to teach them.
D. I intend to use Wordle in Consumer Math and Geometry throughout the year, beginning in September.
II.Tagxedo
A. Tagxedo, like Wordle, is an online program that allows users to create word clouds from text. Tagxedo has two added benefits: 1) Tagxedo can make its word clouds into shapes, and 2) Tagxedo allows you to save your tagxedo image as a jpg file . This saving feature makes it easy to insert your word cloud into a wiki, a word document, or a powerpoint. I think this makes tagxedo much more user friendly than Wordle.
B. Like Wordle, it is best in Tagxedo to save words or text in a Microsoft Word document, then copy and paste it into the Tagxedo program. It is important if you are making a vocabulary list that words that you want to emphasize should be typed in multiple times. The more often a word is in the list, the larger the word appears in the word cloud.
C. Again, like Wordle, Tagxedo doesn’t allow the use of equations or mathematical notation to be treated as words. Because there are so few vocabulary words in many high school math subjects, I am having a hard time thinking of many ways to use the Tagxedo in Math Class. One possibility is to have students write out in words how to solve a problem. Then copy and paste their instructions into Tagxedo and watch the word clouds emerge. We could compare the word clouds that students create.
D. I can see that I can use Tagxedo like Wordle in Geometry and Consumer Math to study vocabulary throughout the year beginning in September.
III. Wikis
A. A Wiki is a very interesting website. It allows a group of individuals to post, add to, and edit previous posts. It lends itself to online discussions between people who may be geographically far apart.
B. In class this week we learned how to create a wiki. We added pages to our wiki. We uploaded test, tables, jpg images, and youtube videos to the pages in our wikis. We used the discussion pages of the class wiki to help each other through the process. I found that again, typing into a Microsoft Word document and copying and pasting into the Wiki page worked best. One of the tricks that I learned was that formatting sometimes changed when text was copied and pasted into wiki pages. I found that if I worked in small chunks of information, the outcome was more what I expected.
C. I have spoken to some teachers and the principal at my school. Based on these conversations, I will not be using a wiki in the classroom. Our school does not use much internet. Everyone is concerned about student’s ability to edit and change the wiki. I do like some of the abilities to share information with students and teachers that we discovered. I am exploring setting up a different type of teacher website that would allow me to communicate with my students.
D. I do like the collaboration that existed in this class. I think that I will set up a wiki for the teachers at our school. Because all of our teachers are part time, we only get a chance to speak together once a month. I think that a wiki could give us an opportunity to discuss and plan things on an ongoing basis.
IV.Diigo
A. Diigo combines social networking with internet searching. It allows people in your group to suggest point out interesting websites to you. Diigo allows users to mark things on websites. You can highlight important parts of websites. You can capture portions of websites. You can ask others in your group to add their notes and highlights to the same website.
B. I am waiting to get a Diigo in Education account. I have emailed Diigo, but have not heard back from them. I am interested in what abilities that will bring me. For now, the tricks are just using the very powerful search capabilities of diigo. I have found more useful mathematical websites using Diigo than using Google or Bing.
C. I will be using Diigo to find more useful webistes for the classroom. I will also find groups of other high school teachers to see what they are using and how they are using it.
D. I am already using Diigo to find interesting approaches to teaching some of the drier elements of Algebra. I really want to get access to all of the educator tools As Soon As Possible!
V .You Tube
A. Youtube is a website that allows users to upload their video files. It contains videos of almost anything that you can imagine. Much of it is useful to waste time, but not for the classroom. Some of it is entirely inappropriate for use in the classroom. BUT, some of it is brilliant, enlightening and helpful. You have to find the needle in the haystack, but there are fantastic things hidden there.
B. One of the lessons that I found is that it takes a lot of time to search through videos to find the good ones. Using Safeshare is a great tip. Thanks for sharing this with us. It allows me to show Youtube videos in class without the list of other suggested videos showing up along the side. Many instructors have posted videos of them lecturing. Some instructors have amazingly creative songs and artwork to demonstrate topics in high school math. They are perfect for reaching students who learn best in ways other than “Me lecture, you listen.”
C. I have noticed that people really remember things that they learn set to music. I have been looking for songs that teach. I have found some of the more dull and dry ideas of Algebra I and Algebra II explained in song on Youtube. The songs are generally bad, but I think kids will enjoy complaining about them too.
D. I am searching out videos for as many different topics as I can find. I will begin using these as soon as they fit into the curriculum. That will probably be mid to late September.
VI. Other Web 2.0 websites A. What is Web 2.0 is a tough question. I have a fuzzy sort of idea about websites floating around, loosely connected to help teachers teach. In the search for an answer for this reflection, I went to Wikipedia and I found this, “Web 2.0 technologies provide teachers with new ways to engage students in a meaningful way. "Children raised on new media technologies are less patient with filling out worksheets and listening to lectures"[41] because students already participate on a global level. The lack of participation in a traditional classroom stems more from the fact that students receive better feedback online. Traditional classrooms have students do assignments and when they are completed, they are just that, finished. However, Web 2.0 shows students that education is a constantly evolving entity. Whether it is participating in a class discussion, or participating in a forum discussion, the technologies available to students in a Web 2.0 classroom does increase the amount they participate.” B. I have found many new and interesting Web2.0 sites for my students to explore. My favorite is Khan Academy (http://www.khanacademy.org/ )which covers all topics of mathematics from Algebra up. It is really amazing and helpful. I can really see me sending students there to watch videos if they have been absent. Here are some other sites that I have found: Math videos to help students understand more topics can be found at: http://www.brightstorm.com/math Extra help for Algebra topics can be found at: http://www.algebasics.com/ Interactive Math Simulations can be found at: http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/category/math More Videos on math topics can be found at: http://www.mathvids.com/ This page is full of links to math virtual manipulatives: http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/category_g_4_t_2.html I am interested in putting my word documents up on the web for students to access at home. In order to do this, I am researching google docs. C. I will use Web 2.0 in the classroom to show the fun and interesting activities that reinforce the learning objectives of classroom lessons. D. I will start using these great websites as soon as school starts in the fall!
Reflection
This class was very different than I expected it to be. I signed up for this class hoping that I would learn how other schools use the internet. Our school has taken the position that the internet is full of bad and inappropriate things, so we will not allow any access to it. I was hoping to come away from the class with a reasonable argument for allowing students to use the internet. What is available that would make the possible risks worth taking.
I did not learn those types of things. I learned a lot of things. Some of them I don’t see how I can use, some of them I will use sometimes, and some things are wonderful and I will use them in my classroom very often. All in all I think it was a worthwhile study and exploration.
What I have learned in this class. I have learned many things in this class. First, I learned about the great learning that can take place when students interact on a discussion board. I learned that I need to relax and invest the time to explore what is available to me and my students on the internet. There is no need for me to re-invent the wheel when other teachers want to share their work with me and my students. I learned about using Youtube in the classroom. There is a great assortment of fun and interesting things available to my students there. I also learned about diigo. I am excited to get access to the educator account and explore some more. I also learned that many teachers are using these internet tools in the classroom.
What this learning will mean to me as a teacher. Opportunities this learning will provide for my students. How I hope to continue to grow in the use of the tools for Web 2.0Ideas for sharing with colleagues
This new information has opened my eyes to more and different ways of teaching. During the first week of the Summer Institute, I took a class on Universal Design for Learning for the inclusive classroom. Many of the things that we explored and discovered this week are tools that will reach out to students with learning disabilities. I will be combining the ideas that I learned in week 1 with the tools I searched out in week 2. Together, I will be able to reach more students. I will be able to help all of my students to have a greater depth of understanding about the sometimes dry and uninteresting topics of Algebra and Precalculus. I hope that I can share my passion for understanding and applying the concepts covered in class to everyday life situations.
I want to share with other teachers in our school some of the great tools we explored this week. I will be directing them to my wiki to explore some of these ideas on their own. I hope that with the help of colleagues, I can find appropriate ways for our students to use the amazing resources that exist for them on the internet.
Culminating Project
- I. Wordle
- A. Wordle is an online program that allows users to create word clouds from text. The text can be a list of vocabulary words or an entire paper or book.
- B. While practicing with Wordle I found that it is best to create the word list in a Microsoft Word document, then copy and paste the list into the Wordle window. By creating the word document, you still have your word list if there is a problem and your word cloud doesn’t come out as expected. As a teacher of Algebra I, Algebra II, Geometry, Pre-Calculus, Calculus and Consumer Math, I was disappointed to learn that Wordle does not treat equations (such as a2+b2=c2) as words. Wordle just ignores all equations and mathematical notation like f(x).
- C. I am still trying to figure out how I can use Wordle in most of my classes. Algebra I, Algebra II, Pre-Calculus and Calculus do not have a lot of vocabulary in each section or even each chapter. I think that I can use Wordle to introduce Vocabulary Words in Geometry and Consumer Math. I could put all of the words into a file and create a word cloud in a font that was outlined, not filled in, print it out and give everyone one at the beginning of the chapter. Students could use colored pencils to color in the words as they are covered. I also think that I could ask each student to type a review document describing what had been learned in the chapter. I could then use the student writing to put into Wordle. We could then compare their individual writing to the initial vocabulary Wordle to see if they learned what I was trying to teach them.
- D. I intend to use Wordle in Consumer Math and Geometry throughout the year, beginning in September.
- II.Tagxedo
- A. Tagxedo, like Wordle, is an online program that allows users to create word clouds from text. Tagxedo has two added benefits: 1) Tagxedo can make its word clouds into shapes, and 2) Tagxedo allows you to save your tagxedo image as a jpg file . This saving feature makes it easy to insert your word cloud into a wiki, a word document, or a powerpoint. I think this makes tagxedo much more user friendly than Wordle.
- B. Like Wordle, it is best in Tagxedo to save words or text in a Microsoft Word document, then copy and paste it into the Tagxedo program. It is important if you are making a vocabulary list that words that you want to emphasize should be typed in multiple times. The more often a word is in the list, the larger the word appears in the word cloud.
- C. Again, like Wordle, Tagxedo doesn’t allow the use of equations or mathematical notation to be treated as words. Because there are so few vocabulary words in many high school math subjects, I am having a hard time thinking of many ways to use the Tagxedo in Math Class. One possibility is to have students write out in words how to solve a problem. Then copy and paste their instructions into Tagxedo and watch the word clouds emerge. We could compare the word clouds that students create.
- D. I can see that I can use Tagxedo like Wordle in Geometry and Consumer Math to study vocabulary throughout the year beginning in September.
- III. Wikis
- A. A Wiki is a very interesting website. It allows a group of individuals to post, add to, and edit previous posts. It lends itself to online discussions between people who may be geographically far apart.
- B. In class this week we learned how to create a wiki. We added pages to our wiki. We uploaded test, tables, jpg images, and youtube videos to the pages in our wikis. We used the discussion pages of the class wiki to help each other through the process. I found that again, typing into a Microsoft Word document and copying and pasting into the Wiki page worked best. One of the tricks that I learned was that formatting sometimes changed when text was copied and pasted into wiki pages. I found that if I worked in small chunks of information, the outcome was more what I expected.
- C. I have spoken to some teachers and the principal at my school. Based on these conversations, I will not be using a wiki in the classroom. Our school does not use much internet. Everyone is concerned about student’s ability to edit and change the wiki. I do like some of the abilities to share information with students and teachers that we discovered. I am exploring setting up a different type of teacher website that would allow me to communicate with my students.
- D. I do like the collaboration that existed in this class. I think that I will set up a wiki for the teachers at our school. Because all of our teachers are part time, we only get a chance to speak together once a month. I think that a wiki could give us an opportunity to discuss and plan things on an ongoing basis.
- IV.Diigo
- A. Diigo combines social networking with internet searching. It allows people in your group to suggest point out interesting websites to you. Diigo allows users to mark things on websites. You can highlight important parts of websites. You can capture portions of websites. You can ask others in your group to add their notes and highlights to the same website.
- B. I am waiting to get a Diigo in Education account. I have emailed Diigo, but have not heard back from them. I am interested in what abilities that will bring me. For now, the tricks are just using the very powerful search capabilities of diigo. I have found more useful mathematical websites using Diigo than using Google or Bing.
- C. I will be using Diigo to find more useful webistes for the classroom. I will also find groups of other high school teachers to see what they are using and how they are using it.
- D. I am already using Diigo to find interesting approaches to teaching some of the drier elements of Algebra. I really want to get access to all of the educator tools As Soon As Possible!
- V .You Tube
- A. Youtube is a website that allows users to upload their video files. It contains videos of almost anything that you can imagine. Much of it is useful to waste time, but not for the classroom. Some of it is entirely inappropriate for use in the classroom. BUT, some of it is brilliant, enlightening and helpful. You have to find the needle in the haystack, but there are fantastic things hidden there.
- B. One of the lessons that I found is that it takes a lot of time to search through videos to find the good ones. Using Safeshare is a great tip. Thanks for sharing this with us. It allows me to show Youtube videos in class without the list of other suggested videos showing up along the side. Many instructors have posted videos of them lecturing. Some instructors have amazingly creative songs and artwork to demonstrate topics in high school math. They are perfect for reaching students who learn best in ways other than “Me lecture, you listen.”
- C. I have noticed that people really remember things that they learn set to music. I have been looking for songs that teach. I have found some of the more dull and dry ideas of Algebra I and Algebra II explained in song on Youtube. The songs are generally bad, but I think kids will enjoy complaining about them too.
- D. I am searching out videos for as many different topics as I can find. I will begin using these as soon as they fit into the curriculum. That will probably be mid to late September.
VI. Other Web 2.0 websitesA. What is Web 2.0 is a tough question. I have a fuzzy sort of idea about websites floating around, loosely connected to help teachers teach. In the search for an answer for this reflection, I went to Wikipedia and I found this, “Web 2.0 technologies provide teachers with new ways to engage students in a meaningful way. "Children raised on new media technologies are less patient with filling out worksheets and listening to lectures"[41] because students already participate on a global level. The lack of participation in a traditional classroom stems more from the fact that students receive better feedback online. Traditional classrooms have students do assignments and when they are completed, they are just that, finished. However, Web 2.0 shows students that education is a constantly evolving entity. Whether it is participating in a class discussion, or participating in a forum discussion, the technologies available to students in a Web 2.0 classroom does increase the amount they participate.”
B. I have found many new and interesting Web2.0 sites for my students to explore. My favorite is Khan Academy (http://www.khanacademy.org/ )which covers all topics of mathematics from Algebra up. It is really amazing and helpful. I can really see me sending students there to watch videos if they have been absent. Here are some other sites that I have found: Math videos to help students understand more topics can be found at: http://www.brightstorm.com/math
Extra help for Algebra topics can be found at: http://www.algebasics.com/
Interactive Math Simulations can be found at: http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/category/math
More Videos on math topics can be found at: http://www.mathvids.com/
This page is full of links to math virtual manipulatives: http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/category_g_4_t_2.html
I am interested in putting my word documents up on the web for students to access at home. In order to do this, I am researching google docs.
C. I will use Web 2.0 in the classroom to show the fun and interesting activities that reinforce the learning objectives of classroom lessons.
D. I will start using these great websites as soon as school starts in the fall!
Reflection
- This class was very different than I expected it to be. I signed up for this class hoping that I would learn how other schools use the internet. Our school has taken the position that the internet is full of bad and inappropriate things, so we will not allow any access to it. I was hoping to come away from the class with a reasonable argument for allowing students to use the internet. What is available that would make the possible risks worth taking.
- I did not learn those types of things. I learned a lot of things. Some of them I don’t see how I can use, some of them I will use sometimes, and some things are wonderful and I will use them in my classroom very often. All in all I think it was a worthwhile study and exploration.
What I have learned in this class.I have learned many things in this class. First, I learned about the great learning that can take place when students interact on a discussion board. I learned that I need to relax and invest the time to explore what is available to me and my students on the internet. There is no need for me to re-invent the wheel when other teachers want to share their work with me and my students.
I learned about using Youtube in the classroom. There is a great assortment of fun and interesting things available to my students there. I also learned about diigo. I am excited to get access to the educator account and explore some more. I also learned that many teachers are using these internet tools in the classroom.